Officer Involved Shooting Update

Posted On : 1/10/2018 11:31:11 AM

Investigators have determined that the bystander and passing pickup struck by gunfire in a December OIS were likely struck by law enforcement gunfire.

January 10, 2018 - UPDATE - Officer Involved Shooting: On December 20, 2017, Deputies with the Utah County Sheriff's Office received information from the Nephi Police Department about a suspect who fired a shot near or at a gas station parking lot in Nephi, Juab County. A Deputy with the Utah County Sheriff's office found the suspect pickup driving north on I-15 a short distance south of the Spanish Fork Main Street off ramp. After other Deputies and a Spanish Fork Officer got into position, the Deputy initiated a traffic stop on I-15 at mile 260, a short distance north of the SR-77 overpass. The suspect, Arturo Ray Gallemore-Jimenez, age 37, initially complied with commands of Deputies to put his hands out the window. Gallemore-Jimenez then put his hands back inside his pickup. Moments later he reached out and fired multiple shots toward Deputies and Officers with a handgun. Those four Deputies from the Utah County Sheriff's Office and the Spanish Fork Officer returned fire at Gallemore-Jimenez for less than 6 seconds. He then drove away and led Deputies and Officers on a pursuit at speeds of approximately 30 MPH. To prevent Gallemore-Jimenez from exiting the freeway and further endangering the public, a Deputy positioned himself at the north bound I-15 off ramp to University Parkway. Other Deputies, Officers, and UHP Troopers positioned themselves at other off ramps. I-15 on ramps were also closed to prevent drivers from getting on the freeway and becoming involved in this ongoing incident. As Gallemore-Jimenez approached University Parkway he turned abruptly toward the off ramp. The Deputy positioned there then fired multiple rounds at Gallemore-Jimenez for less than 4 seconds. Further up the off ramp, Gallemore-Jimenez veered off the pavement and crashed into a fence. A few minutes later he crawled out of his pickup. At that point Deputies and Officers approached the pickup and took Gallemore-Jimenez into custody.

As this incident proceeded, investigators learned that a 21-year-old Provo man had been injured by gunfire. He and a co-worker were at the side of the freeway, in the right-hand emergency lane putting gas in their pickup. The freeway was dark, without street lighting, where the victim's pickup was located nearly 1,700 feet north of the initial stop where Gallemore-Jimenez shot at Deputies and Officers.

A passing northbound pickup truck, driven by a 37-year-old Spanish Fork man carrying his family, was also struck by gunfire. One gunshot hit the pickup at the top edge of the back window. No one in this pickup was injured.

The 21-year-old victim sustained a gunshot wound to his right shoulder. The round from that wound lodged in his upper back and Doctor's elected, initially, to not remove that round. That round appeared to have broken into several pieces. This victim underwent surgery on January 4, 2018, and the bullet fragments were removed.

The location of the suspect, Deputies, and Officer during the exchange of gunfire lead investigators to believe that the round that struck the 21-year-old Provo man and the round that struck the passing pickup most likely came from a weapon fired by law enforcement in response to shots fired at them by Gallemore-Jimenez. This incident remains under investigation.